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Home DNA Test Kit for Muscle Type

Muscle Type DNA Test

A Home DNA test to show if your Muscles are suited to Power or Endurance Sports

Your muscle type and development is controlled by your genetic makeup, which means that if two people train and eat in exactly the same way, their muscles and sports performance will develop differently, depending on their DNA.

Our new Muscle Type DNA test kit shows whether you are predisposed to producing powerful, explosive type muscles, or whether your muscles are built for endurance. Knowing this about your body will help you decide the type of sports that you are best suited to, and the type of exercise that your body responds to best. It gives you a better understanding and guidance on how to optimise your training and boosts your motivation.

How does it work? Well, it’s down to a gene called ACTN3, which is responsible for making a protein called Actinin 3 found in your muscle fibres. There are two types of muscle fibres in our bodies; slow twitch and fast twitch. The slow twitch muscle fibres are very efficient and can work continuously for long periods of time, whereas fast twitch fibres are good at generating the short, explosive bursts of power needed in sports such as sprinting and weight lifting. The Actinin 3 protein is found almost exclusively in fast twitch muscle fibres.

There are variants of the ACTN3 gene and it can either be active or inactive depending on the variant you have. If ACTN3 is inactive, it means that your muscles have more of an endurance profile. They are better able to use oxygen in energy production, which is important when your muscles need to work over long periods of time, as in cycling or marathons. If your ACTN3 gene is active you have the fast twitch muscle fibres needed for explosive muscle, which is important in fast and power sports such as sprint, weight lifting etc. Further information about Muscle Types and genetic control is available here

To find out about your muscle type is a very easy process. Simply take a saliva sample using the swab provided in the kit and send it to us for analysis in our accredited laboratory. The DNA in your saliva sample will be analysed to show the type of ACTN3 gene you have, and your results can be downloaded from the website using a unique code provided in the kit within 7 to 10 days.